South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

Crestwood named one of best places to raise children in America

Crestwood Elementary School Principal Scott Taylor and fifth-grade teacher Cindy Kapodistrias accept the National Blue Ribbon School Award for their school during a recent ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Crestwood Elementary School Principal Scott Taylor and fifth-grade teacher Cindy Kapodistrias accept the National Blue Ribbon School Award for their school during a recent ceremony in Washington, D.C.

For its top-tier schools and excellent municipal services, the city of Crestwood recently was named the “Best Place to Raise Kids in Missouri” on Bloomberg Businessweek Magazine’s list of the best places to raise children in America.

“The culture, music, and jobs of St. Louis — not to mention the World Series-winning Cardinals — may be only 13 miles away, but the suburban community of Crestwood … offers lower tax rates and better municipal services,” the magazine said. “It is part of the Lindbergh School District, which was the state’s first to offer the International Baccalaureate program.”

Full of affordable and high quality housing stock, Crestwood maintains one of the lowest residential property tax rates in the St. Louis area while ranking among the best municipal services in St. Louis County. Named a Tree City USA in 2011 for the 16th year, featuring one of the best public school systems in Missouri and home to seven parks, Crestwood is a great place to raise a family, according to a joint news release from the city and Lindbergh Schools.

In addition, Lindbergh Schools has been ranked No. 1 among Missouri K-12 districts for two consecutive years for academic achievement. Crestwood and Long schools are both top 10 elementaries in Missouri and National Schools of Character. Crestwood Elementary School also won the 2011 National Blue Ribbon School Award, which is the highest award a school can earn for academic achievement, and Truman Middle School opened this fall, creating a neighborhood middle school for Crestwood residents.

Bloomberg Businessweek and Bloomberg Rankings evaluated 4,169 cities based on information about education, economy, crime, amenities, air quality and ethnic diversity. Expenditures, income and school performance were given the most weight, according to the joint release.